rejuvenatement – not retirement

I savor La Jolla’s coast.
Feeding delight near the cove
time to frolic in rushing waves,
flipper scoot on to sand.
I snort my derision
at gawking beings.

But the best, oh the best . . .
sun drenched rocks.
Lying close, just resting.
Crowds be damned.

Written for day 6, national poetry month. Combines prompts from Toads to write in the voice of another (can be an animal) and the dVerse Monday quadrille word-prompt, “close”. A quadrille is a poem of exactly 44 words, sans title. Prompt word muse be used in body of the poem.

Photo taken last month at what is called the Children’s Pool in La Jolla, California. Originally designated as a sheltered sandy beach for children to swim, it has been taken over by seals. Many people walk the coast line to watch the seals there, and on nearby rocks.

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70 thoughts on “A Seal’s Life”

Ah, seals! I love to visit the seals along our coastline. We have several sanctuaries and colonies, the one at Blakeney Point being the largest. I think they must be relieved that the crowds are not bothering them at the moment.

No seals in Boston…..the seals in and around Provincetown where we go in September have drawn the sharks so they are very endangered there. But here, in LaJolla, they were an absolute delight to see. Sounds like you are lucky to be near them as well.

When the weather is nice, that would be something one could do by oneself (social distancing in these days of the pandemic) but at the same time, getting close to other living beings. It think it would be amazing to get that close!

SO glad you enjoyed. Yes…..we arrived home (to Boston) just in the nick of time….three days later San Diego and Boston were shuttered. I smile just looking back and this photo. I remember when we looked down on these rocks, at first glance, it just looked like the rock was textured and then with a closer look, we saw it was the seals!

It was wonderful to see them. We don’t have them here in Boston. When we’re in Provincetown (on Cape Cod) in September, we know they are near and they draw the sharks. So seals are not wanted there. Here in La Jolla, it was a joy to watch them!

I could just feel those warm rocks that they like to bask on. I’ve never seen seals out in the wild but hear that they can take over a lot of beaches, boardwalks and boat docks to do with as they please. Haha! I enjoyed the(ir) viewpoint of their life, Lillian.

That is exactly what happened in the little beach cove (not shown in the photo). Children and adults no longer go there as it is now just the seals playground. We saw many young pubs flipper scooting up onto the sand to nuzzle with the mamas. Fascinating to watch their behaviors.

OOOOh…..we are now back in Boston where we live. We so enjoyed taking the commuter bus out to La Jolla from our Jan through early March apartment rental in San Diego. How I would love to have a place like this near us….they were delightful to watch…especially the little pubs flipper scooting up on to the sandy beach (not pictured in photo) to nuzzle near their mamas. I’d be making that drive once a month! 🙂

Aww I love the seals Lillian, what a beautiful image and poem to lift our spirits. I especially love ‘But the best, oh the best . . . sun drenched rocks. Lying close, just resting’
Hope you and yours are all safe and well xxx

It does not seem possible that we just came home from San Diego on March 11 and three days later, it seemed the world shut down! Stay safe….we are hunkered down, taking a daily walk on a path not traveled by many, wearing masks when we’re in the “common areas” of our 17 story high rise in Boston….George only walks to the grocery story once a week. It is a surreal world right now. To think we were watching these sunbathing creatures less than a month ago!